Fernando Alonso joked that he expects a cut from McLaren team principal Andrea Stella’s bonus due to the fact the Spaniard was the main reason Stella joined the Woking outfit back in 2015.
An impressive 2024 campaign for McLaren ended with them securing their first Formula One constructors’ title since 1998.
Lando Norris triumphed at the Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix to make it six race wins for McLaren this season – four via the 24-year-old Brit and two courtesy of teammate Oscar Piastri.
Aston Martin’s Alonso, who spent five seasons at McLaren in 2007 and again from 2015 to 2018, described their title-winning efforts this year as “fantastic” and was happy to see some of his old friends on the grid enjoy success.
Stella was Alonso’s race engineer at Ferrari from 2010 to 2014 before they both moved to McLaren, where the Italian began as head of race operations and took on different roles until he became team principal ahead of the 2023 season.
“Zak [Brown, McLaren CEO] is a really good friend of mine. We will spend some days together now, in the next few weeks. We will have some fun track days; we rented a track actually,” revealed Alonso after the race at Yas Marina Circuit on Sunday.
“I’m a really good friend of Andrea. In a way I brought him to McLaren when I joined McLaren.
“I told him before the race, what Abu Dhabi took from our hands in 2010, hopefully today it gives something back to you, and it did. I’m happy for him, he deserves it, he’s a very clever guy. McLaren is an example for many things.”
When a reporter asked Alonso if he was taking credit for McLaren’s title run, the Spaniard quipped: “Yes, I should be part of his [Stella’s] bonus.”
Alonso renewed his commitment to Aston Martin by signing a long-term contract earlier this year, which should keep him racing for the Silverstone-based team through 2026, and potentially take on other roles there in the future.
A standout 2023 saw Alonso achieve eight podiums with Aston Martin. But the team didn’t trend in the right direction this year, and despite retaining P5 in the constructors’ championship, neither Alonso, nor his teammate Lance Stroll, managed to finish higher than fifth at any of the 24 races.
Still, the two-time world champion is excited about what is to come with Aston Martin, where new personnel will be joining, a state-of-the-art facility has been built at Silverstone, and a new power unit partnership has been signed with Honda starting 2026.
“I think the new factory now is completed, also the new wind tunnel is going to be open soon. Andy Cowell [Group CEO at Aston Martin Aramco F1 Team], did change some of the weaknesses he found in the team. We have trust in the new management and things are moving in the right direction. So I’m happy for that,” said the 43-year-old Alonso.
“But in Formula One, there are not many miracles, you need to be patient, you need to find that sweet spot in the car, you need to find that upgrade that really awakes everything in these ground-effect cars, as McLaren proved last year.
“They started last and then won races in the midseason and we need to learn from them. It’s a good example of how things can be done and we will try to reset this winter and come back stronger.”
Alonso added: “McLaren did not do much in 2023 until Austria [early July], where they were on the podium. In Austria they introduced a package where they gained six, seven 10ths or whatever and that was the beginning of a series of packages that put the car as the fastest eventually.
“That ‘Austria package’, if we’re going to call it that, this is something that we need to work on.”
After walking away empty-handed through a four-race run from Austin to Las Vegas, Alonso was happy to score points in the last two stops of the 2024 season, finishing seventh in Qatar and ninth in Abu Dhabi.
He says the winter break will be the perfect time for the team to “reset” and “learn from all the difficulties and mistakes of this year”.
At 43, Alonso insists his motivation is still high, especially entering this next phase of transformation with Aston Martin.
“I’m just enjoying myself during this part of my career. I still feel fast, and I feel motivated, and I’m enjoying with the team, the progress, the good things, but also the bad things, we try to learn from those,” said Alonso.
“Soon we will start working with great people that I admire, like [F1 design guru] Adrian Newey, Enrico [Cardile] is joining the team as well soon [as F1 chief technical officer], Andy Cowell.
“So people that I raced against, and now I have the possibility to work alongside them and learn from them. It’s a good moment of my life and my career and I’m enjoying every day.”
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
JAPANESE GRAND PRIX INFO
Schedule (All times UAE)
First practice: Friday, 5-6.30am
Second practice: Friday, 9-10.30am
Third practice: Saturday, 7-8am
Qualifying: Saturday, 10-11am
Race: Sunday, 9am-midday
Race venue: Suzuka International Racing Course
Circuit Length: 5.807km
Number of Laps: 53
Watch live: beIN Sports HD
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 261hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 405Nm at 1,750-3,500rpm
Transmission: 9-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 6.9L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh117,059
How to wear a kandura
Dos
- Wear the right fabric for the right season and occasion
- Always ask for the dress code if you don’t know
- Wear a white kandura, white ghutra / shemagh (headwear) and black shoes for work
- Wear 100 per cent cotton under the kandura as most fabrics are polyester
Don’ts
- Wear hamdania for work, always wear a ghutra and agal
- Buy a kandura only based on how it feels; ask questions about the fabric and understand what you are buying
Indoor cricket in a nutshell
Indoor Cricket World Cup - Sep 16-20, Insportz, Dubai
16 Indoor cricket matches are 16 overs per side
8 There are eight players per team
9 There have been nine Indoor Cricket World Cups for men. Australia have won every one.
5 Five runs are deducted from the score when a wickets falls
4 Batsmen bat in pairs, facing four overs per partnership
Scoring In indoor cricket, runs are scored by way of both physical and bonus runs. Physical runs are scored by both batsmen completing a run from one crease to the other. Bonus runs are scored when the ball hits a net in different zones, but only when at least one physical run is score.
Zones
A Front net, behind the striker and wicketkeeper: 0 runs
B Side nets, between the striker and halfway down the pitch: 1 run
C Side nets between halfway and the bowlers end: 2 runs
D Back net: 4 runs on the bounce, 6 runs on the full
Who was Alfred Nobel?
The Nobel Prize was created by wealthy Swedish chemist and entrepreneur Alfred Nobel.
- In his will he dictated that the bulk of his estate should be used to fund "prizes to those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind".
- Nobel is best known as the inventor of dynamite, but also wrote poetry and drama and could speak Russian, French, English and German by the age of 17. The five original prize categories reflect the interests closest to his heart.
- Nobel died in 1896 but it took until 1901, following a legal battle over his will, before the first prizes were awarded.
